This is the new home for Foosball.info. All the content that you will see here were published from 1999 to 2014. I have begun the tedious process of migrating and re-posting all the old articles and photos here. It is still a work in progress. - c0untryman (Last updated June 2, 2016)

Thursday, November 16, 2000

Wasteland Pub

Byline: Oliver Yong.

It sure was a WASTELAND! Time: 9:30pm. Date:
EVERYDAY! Yeah, that was the time most of the players would come to play their
favorite game, foosball. Back then Kenny, Junior, BOY and some of the other
super players were around. Things were pretty normal back then. Foosball, beer
& pool. Once in a while we would see some gorgeous chick, WALK PASS...
hmmm... I guess we were in the wrong pub.

The pub’s owners back then were Kenny, Junior,
Uncle Sam and... shucks! I can’t remember the others. Anyway, Doreen was one of
the super regulars. What to do? Kenny worked there! She would come over and give
us a warm welcome. What a nice lady, and pretty too! I would yak with her for
hours if god permitted me to sleep in Wasteland! She’s a great lady.
However, nowadays she is the proud owner of Union Restaurant in Sri
Damansara.

Everyone knew practically everyone. Freddie and Ms.
Chin were the staff that managed to handle the foosball players. “Coins please
Freddie/Ms Chin”. They would smile and pass us the coins. It was great. Beer
there was cheap and the atmosphere was good too. No foul smell, that is good.
You get to hear the best songs, not those funny R&B, and Techno types, but
retro and also rave songs... those were the IN thing, man. They would play songs
from ‘Light House Family’; those were great songs for foosers.

Players would come and go, college students would
come for a quick game before they headed on to their favorite clubbing area.
Senior management would come over for a drink and some finger food before they
adjourned home.

Serious players or should I say wasted players
played foos till the wee hours of the morning! Yeah, like 7am in the morning!
Playing till 7 was a normal thing for us during long weekends, holidays and
special occasions. After the long foosing sessions, we would go for some tim sum
or better still, go home to sleep! We did and still do love the sport and
companionship from all of the foosers. It was THE sport to play during the
night.

Richard, Bernard, Albert and the rest would just
hang out there. They would drink, drink and drink some more! Richard’s game
sucked back then. I had a chance to partner him in a DYP session. He never did
walk straight, especially when he was in Wasteland. He was a real
sucker for the game. “Defense? Offense? What is that!” He has improved since
then. He uses his head and wit for the game right now. By the way, we got
knocked out on our first game and also our first losers bracket match! Richard,
whenever you need a partner, call me man, I would love to partner you in any
tournament, anytime.

It was a close knit joint. We knew each other and
we welcomed new patrons. There was one time, I left my handphone behind, I left
it there for about half an hour, and to my surprise, the phone was given to the
staff and I got it back. Though it was not the greatest pub in the world, we all
felt the warmth and friendliness there. Newcomers to the pub didn’t feel it on
their first trip, but in the long run, we were all one big happy bunch of
drinkers and foosers.

Back then, SWOT was happening, as they have got
hooked to the sport. Riding their cool machines, with cool attire, arriving with
a “bang”. Whoa.. BEN, RAY,
SEAN,
ANNA! A
typical night would be beer & soft drinks for the gentlemen, coffee or tea
for the lady.

Sara would always
be there whenever BOY was there. Sometimes I pitied that girl, she always got
NAGGED by BOY... Deep down I know that Boy is always there for Sara, pitching
for her to win and also urging her to fight for the game! Bravo to Sara! Do not
look down on this lady player! She is one of the best defensive players I have
ever seen!

Henry and Alison would come in late, about 4am
when they finished their duty in Time-Out Sports Bar. Henry wouldn’t
play foosball though, he would just get his beer or liquor and yak yak yak he
was good in yakking though. Alison would get her cue and play her infamous
pool...

Sigh… OH YEAH! I remember, when foosball really
turned from hot to LAVA. Listen, it all started when GIRLS.. yeah GIRLS came to
play. It turned from a pleasurable sport to a “bird-watching” sport. Some birds
were BIG birds, and some were just normal birds, trying their luck in the game.
I think most of you guy know who this lady is!

Lady players, they played their part in foosball
history. They attracted male players. In a healthy way of course! “What a lady
can do.. a man can do.. BETTER!” Male chauvinist pigs! Well, generally Asian men
thought that (some still do). As time went by, the ladies played from “gosh she
can play” standard to “good enough to beat some veteran players too”. Players
like Anna, Aunnie, Alison and Sara, not to mention Yin Yin & Amy. They were good. I
remembered when I played Amy, she was a good pull shooter, I lost to her. I
guess my over-confidence killed my game. A message for all of you ladies, Thank
You for joining us, it used to be a male dominated sport, but I always believed
in WOMAN-POWER! Girls, you ladies are the best thing that ever happened to this
sport! You have lifted us from hell! Here’s to Lady FOOSERS!

Things changed pretty drastically when
WasteLand was renamed Tatt Shack. It was really a smart move.
Everything was different. Things were new, foosball tables were reallocated to a
different position. Things weren’t good for a lot of pub outlets, due to the
economic slump (1997). Things were good for a while, but eventually the economic
slump hit our beloved pub too. Sadly, the birthplace of foosball was closed,
forever. It will be difficult to find such a place for good foosin’ and friends
ever again?